WINNIPEG — The Manitoba government’s decision to raise the minimum wage to $10 an hour on Oct. 1 is being met with criticism by business lobbyists, including the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA).

“Another increase in the minimum wage, the twelfth in 11 years, hits an industry, which is already operating on tight margins,” said Dwayne Marling, the CRFA’s Manitoba-Saskatchewan vice-president. “In Manitoba, not only are margins tight, we have the lowest per capita foodservice sales in the country. Real sales in the province’s restaurants were flat in 2010, compared to an increase of 1.4 per cent nationally.”

WINNIPEG — Political observers in Canada’s Prairie provinces expect the newly elected Conservative majority government to loosen the controls of the Canadian Wheat Board, after critics predicted the Tories would shut it down.

According to a report from CBC News, Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner of Manitoba says the government won’t be looking to dismantle the Board entirely but will likely look at ways to allow farmers to opt out, or market their own product.

WINNIPEG — The team behind Winnipeg’s Tre Visi Cucina Italiana have upped the ante, opening Sensi Wine Lounge on the second floor of the historic Grange/Mitchell building, which now houses both businesses.

“Sensi is premised on the belief that the enjoyment of wine and wine-friendly cuisine doesn’t have to be expensive or pretentious,” reads a description on the lounge website. “The extensive wine list features by-the-glass, bottle and wine flight selections that are carefully chosen to represent the best value-for-dollar in their categories.”

WINNIPEG — The Manitoba Human Rights Commission has dismissed the claim of a Winnipeg waitress who was fired for shaving her head.

Stephanie Lozinski, the 21-year-old university student involved, was told her case was not a human rights matter because she voluntarily shaved her locks even though she worked at Winnipeg’s Sawatdee Thai restaurant. Lozinski cut her hair to show support for her uncle who has since died from cancer.

Linh Bo, the restaurant’s manager told the media the dismissal was justified. “If you go [out for] fine dining, what do you expect from a server? Seriously! You walk into fine dining and you have fine dining,” he’s quoted as saying by the Winnipeg Free Press.